I am a courtesan of Cabernet, a mistress of Malbec, a harlot for Hermitage. WSET Advanced lady of the vine. Passionate about learning all I can from climate to cellar, with a special love for pairing gastronomic delights with sensual wines. Enjoy!

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Food Trucks are the new food trend. The Food Network has been overtaken by shows about entrepreneurs wanting to win their own mobile restaurant. One of their shows, Eat St., has become a hit (especially in our home!), featuring food trucks and their fantastic fare from across North America. They've even made it to Hollywood, with fictitious trucks created in movies such as What to Expect When You're Expecting and The Five Year Engagement (mmm...Jason Segel!). Calgary has it's share of trucks; they can be seen out and about at various locations throughout the day, and hungry foodies can track their locations via Facebook, Twitter, and an iPhone app. There have been a few recent events here in YYC that have featured multiple food trucks, and my husband and I have found ourselves at these events, salivating over the scrumptious scents, waiting to try as many different foods as we can. Here is a rundown of what we've tried, what we liked, and what we didn't like as much:

Labour Day Weekend: Student Move-In Day at the University

A good buddy of ours works at the U of C and he emailed us a few days before the long weekend to let us know a few of the food trucks would be at the University for Student Move-In Day. The featured trucks on-site were the Mighty Skillet, The Noodle Bus, and Fiasco Gelato. Our first stop was the Mighty Skillet. Advertised as Calgary's original brunch truck, I was excited to see what breakfast fare they were offering up. And they certainly didn't disappoint with the Bangover Burger, which features a fried egg and bacon on a burger with their own spicy secret sauce. This burger was well worth the wait! It was hot, greasy, spicy, savoury, and satisfying-and if I had been hung over I bet the Bangover would have cured it! The burger came with wedge fries and a very spicy ketchup-style dipping sauce. The sauce was too spicy for me but my husband loved it! Unfortunately, I did not really care for the wedge fries. They were a little under-seasoned for my liking. A little more salt would have made them so much better, I thought!

I headed over to the Noodle Bus for dessert, and my husband chose Fiasco Gelato to satisfy his sweet tooth. I chose the Banana Fritters, which is basically 2 deep-fried spring rolls filled with banana and served with vanilla ice cream. It seemed to take a long time compared to other food orders that were placed after mine; I was hoping my extra-long wait would be worth it. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Although the "fritters" satisfied my sweet tooth, I was left wanting more. I think maybe a Vietnamese version of a spicy ginger peanut sauce to top the fritters would have really knocked the dessert out of the park. Lucky for me, my husband was willing to share his Fiasco Gelato with me!

He ordered a large serving of gelato, and you get your choice of up to three flavours in the bowl. He chose Mumbai Mango, Raspberry Lime, and Chocolate Flake. Three hefty scoops of gelato in one bowl for $6. I think this is great value! The Mumbai Mango was good and the Chocolate Flake was delectably better, but my personal favourite was the Raspberry Lime. So light, refreshing, with a wonderful hint of lime, and it left me wanting more and more! It was the perfect ending to a great day of food truck sampling!

September 7: Sundown Chowdown

This event was put on by the Calgary Farmer's Market, and featured 12 food trucks on-site! This was advertised so well via radio and Facebook that hundreds of Calgarians came down to sample the trucks! When we got there at 7pm, we were surprised to find that some of the trucks had already closed up shop because they ran out of food. After getting in the lineup for Fries & Dolls and not moving for about 30 minutes, I decided to try the Red Wagon Diner-and boy am I glad I did! I ended up with the Smoked Meat Hash, which is basically breakfast for dinner: a couple of eggs over hash browns, onions, mushrooms and smoked meat, served with rye toast. The smokiness of the meat rounds out a savoury, peppery, flavourful dish that filled me up. My husband ordered The Traditional, which is 6oz of Montreal Smoked Meat on a rye bread sandwich with a mustard blend, lettuce, tomato and a pickle on the side. Although the mustard is pretty strong, it holds it's own against the meat and is a robust, tasty sandwich. Hubs loved it!

I also happened to notice the lineup was short at Fiasco Gelato. I wondered if they had anymore of that spectacular Raspberry Lime on the truck that night so I had to find out! Although they didn't, I made sure to order a large cup with the Chocolate Flake again, and tried out two new flavours: Blueberry Basil and Bourbon Vanilla Bean. Although I enjoyed all three, the Blueberry Basil gelato blew my mind! The basil and blueberry flavours married well together but both stood out on their own too. This is one I will get over and over!

All in all, there isn't much on the food trucks that won't satisfy your appetite. But there are some trucks that just do it right on all counts. If you ever see a truck while on your lunch break or at an event, try it out! Great food can come from a truck! This is one trend I'm happy to partake in!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

A couple of weeks ago a group of us went to Pulcinella's restaurant in Calgary, which specializes in authentic pizza cooked the traditional wood-fired oven way. I have been there a couple of times this season and have grown very fond of their Bruschetta Misto appetizer, great for sharing or to have all to yourself! 2 slices of the 4 you are served are done the traditional way with tomatoes, olive oil, etc. However, the other 2 slices are different, but so delicious and inventive thanks to the Executive Chef! He tops them with roasted sweet red peppers and dried ricotta instead! I actually crave this now and am trying to hold my drool in while typing in this entry! Here's a photo of the Bruschetta Misto:

If you are ever in Calgary and craving pizza, I highly recommend trying out Pulcinella's in Kensington. Check it out: